Our inspection took place on 9 February 2016 and was unannounced. At the last inspection in September 2013, the provider was meeting the regulations we looked at.Wilton House provides care and support for up to six people who have mental health needs, learning difficulties, autistic spectrum disorder, and other associated complex needs. On the day of our inspection there were five people living in the service.
There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People felt safe in the service and were safeguarded from the risk of abuse. There were clear lines of reporting safeguarding concerns to appropriate agencies and staff were knowledgeable about safeguarding adults. We found that there were processes in place to manage identifiable risks within and outside the service to ensure people did not have their freedom restricted unnecessarily.
There were sufficient numbers of suitably skilled staff, during both the day and night, to meet people’s needs and promote their safety. Robust recruitment processes had been followed to ensure that staff were suitable to work with people. Systems were in place to ensure people’s medicines were managed safely.
Staff were provided with induction and training to keep their skills up to date and to support them to deliver appropriate care to people. Staff were supported with supervision and appraisal, which gave them the opportunity to discuss training and development needs, alongside any other concerns.
The registered manager and staff were aware of their responsibilities under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). There were procedures in place to assess people’s ability to make decisions about their care. Staff understood how to make best interest decisions when people were unable to make decisions about their care.
People were supported to maintain a balanced diet. Staff worked in conjunction with healthcare professionals to ensure people’s health and well- being was maintained.
Positive relationships had been developed between people and staff who treated them with kindness and compassion. Staff were knowledgeable about how to meet people’s needs and understood how people preferred to be supported on a daily basis. Staff understood how to promote and protect people’s rights and maintain their privacy and dignity. Relationships with family members were considered important and staff supported people to maintain these.
People received person-centred care, based on their likes, dislikes and individual preferences. Before people came to live at the service their needs had been assessed to ensure the care provided would be personalised and responsive to their identified needs. People were supported to undertake a range of social activities and pastimes in accordance with their preferences.
People knew how to raise a complaint should they need to and had accessible information on how to do this. People were asked for their feedback about the service and improvements were made in accordance with this feedback so as to drive improvement.
Leadership at the service was visible and as a result staff were inspired to provide a quality service. Senior staff regularly assessed and monitored the quality of care provided to people. Staff were encouraged to contribute to the development of the service and understood the provider’s visions and values.